Superintendent Mike Miles, left, and trustee Bernadette Nutall
A former Dallas ISD executive says Superintendent Mike Miles asked her to testify in a possible investigation into trustee Bernadette Nutall’s removal from Dade Middle School.
Former school leadership chief Sylvia Reyna said Miles asked her two weeks ago about whether she would tell investigators about an incident she had with Nutall two years ago. She said Miles said he planned to call for an investigation into Nutall’s behavior and, specifically, his decision to have police physically remove her from Dade last month.
“He called me to give me a heads up that he wanted me to be deposed,” said Reyna, who retired in July. “He said, ‘I want you to be able to talk about an incident that occurred two years ago when trustee Nutall was yelling.’”
Reyna said she recalled the incident but not the details of it. Nutall got upset with Reyna at Dallas ISD headquarters and raised her voice, Reyna said. She said she told Miles last month that she would tell the truth to investigators, including that Nutall didn’t bully her.
“I didn’t feel threatened,” Reyna said about the incident. “My job was to work and resolve issues and problems, and sometimes you have tempers at the end of the day. But I never felt threatened by any board member.”
Miles didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Requests for comment were also left with spokesman Jon Dahlander.
Nutall declined to discuss the specific incident between her and Reyna two years ago. “I’m very passionate about education and our children getting the best education,” she said. “Women who are direct and pointed are deemed emotional. We get put in that box.”
The push by Miles for an investigation isn’t the first time he has wanted to put pressure on one of his nine bosses on the school board. More than a year ago, Miles used a top administrator’s resignation letter, which harshly criticized trustee Elizabeth Jones, “to generate positive publicity for himself and negative publicity for the board,” an independent investigation found.
Sylvia Reyna, Dallas ISD's former school leadership chief. (Dallas ISD )
After that investigation, the board put Miles on an improvement plan and amended his contract to make it a fireable offense if he fails to maintain “an effective working relationship” with trustees.
Dallas ISD trustees could approve an investigation at a called board meeting Thursday. They are scheduled to vote on a proposal to “employ a legal firm to conduct a fact-finding investigation of events leading up to and occurring” at Dade between Miles and Nutall. The board could also take action against Nutall and Miles over the incident.
Board president Miguel Solis said Wednesday he hopes the trustees put the Dade incident behind them. ”I’m focused on one thing, to come to a conclusion on this issue,” Solis said. “I want to put the focus of the board back on the students.”
Miles and Nutall have been at odds with each other since the superintendent came to Dallas in July 2012. Their ongoing disputes escalated last month, when Miles ordered three district police officers to remove her from Dade. Nutall said teachers invited her to go to Dade the Monday after Miles replaced 10 teachers, the principal and two assistant principals in a attempt to improve the struggling campus.
When Miles saw Nutall at Dade, he told her to leave the campus before he was about to lead a staff meeting about the personnel changes, Nutall said. When Nutall refused and told him she had the right to be at Dade, which is in her district, Miles called Dallas ISD police to remove her.
Neither Miles or Nutall have offered to dial down the tensions between them. A few days after Miles had Nutall removed, he declined to apologize to her at a community meeting in South Dallas and said that she should apologize to him. Last week, Nutall filed a complaint with the Dallas County district attorney’s office over her removal and accused him of “official oppression.”